Addendum 3-Fren/da's Return
Hamazura was currently screaming at the sight before him, a dead person, who's corpse he saw with his very own eyes, was standing right in front of him. This had to be some kind of joke played by some darkside organization, an elaborate ploy by someone out for their heads, or perhaps the machinations of a scheming god. The rest of ITEM were no better as they've all practically frozen in place.
"Uh…Hamazura? In the end, are you going to stop screaming anytime soon?"
The teenage boy's screams finally died down, he began to stammer over his words as he tried to speak.
"Fr-Frenda? Is t-that really you?"
"Yes, it's really me, Hamazura. In the end, how many times am I going to say this today?"
"But I saw your corpse, Mugino threw it at me!"
"I got better."
"From death!?"
Frenda nodded in agreement, at which point Hamazura began to wobble a bit. He placed his palm on his forehead before continuing.
"I think I need a drink of water and a lie down." He said as he proceeded to walk out of the living room.
"Aw, but in the end that would mean you're going to miss movie night. I was really looking forward to 'Death Days 2'."
"Wait, how do super know that's the movie we're going to watch?" Kinuhata asked, the shock at Frenda's return still visible on her face, compounded by her shock of Frenda's knowledge.
"Oh that? In the end, I possessed a Mugino this morning to choose that movie."
"You know, I think I super need to lie down as well." Kinuhata said as she placed her hand on her temple.
"At this rate, movie night would be canceled!"
"It's alright Frenda, we can super watch it tomorrow. It's just that this day has been super exhausting for me." Kinuhata said as she made her way towards her room.
"So…Frenda, what's with the new clothes…and sword?" Takitsubo wondered
"Oh this? In the end I serve the All-Mother Othinus now as one of her valkyries hence this uniform. Originally it was a skin tight riding outfit with a jacket tied to the waist, but the other valkyries objected to it." Frenda gestured her hand as she explained
Takitsubo scratched her head before inquiring further "Wait, when you say 'All-Mother' do you mean the Norse god Odin? This isn't just some strange cosplay you're wearing right?"
"In the end, this isn't cosplay, Odin exists and is female, hence the title 'All-Mother'."
"I'm going to lie down as well." Takitsubo said as she went to find Hamazura
"Wait, wait, wait, back up for a second Frenda." Mugino stood up and started shaking her hand "I just thought of this, but you're admitting to working for an international terrorist. Doesn't that concern you a bit?"
"In the end, she's the reason I'm back, it's also far from the worst thing I've done, and she went legit recently."
"What do you mean?"
"Turn on the news."
The voice activated television then lit up and tuned into the news channel. The news anchor was currently reporting on the hot new thing for that day, the appointment of a new member of the Board of Directors for Academy City.
"Yes, that is true, the Chairman of Academy City, Accelerator, has recently appointed a new member for the board since one of them was arrested in the lead up to Operation Handcuffs. Let us tune in to our on site reporter to witness the Chairman's announcement."
The screen then switched to a reporter in front of a large crowd in front of a stage. On it was a large screen behind a podium with a microphone on it. The screen lit up to reveal Accelerator who began to speak and the news camera shifted towards the stage.
"People of Academy city, following the arrest of Neoka Norito, the Board of Directors, normally 12 in number, has had a hole in its ranks. I sought to fill that hole as quickly as possible while employing a suitable candidate for the job. With that, I am here to announce the new member of the Board of Directors, Kamijou Othinus."
On cue, a girl, who looked like she was around 15 years old, walked onto the stage. She wore a formal black and white suit, a leather eyepatch over her right eye, and her blonde hair was tied into a bun behind her head. Mugino recognized that it was the same girl she went after the very same day. Othinus walked up to the podium and spoke into the microphone.
"Greetings mortals, I Othinus have taken this role as to make up for some glaring deficiencies in the Academy City system. I announce, with my appointment onto the Board of Directors, that I will be refining the esper development programs in Academy City to produce more high level espers, as well as the improvement of law enforcement institutions such as Judgement and Anti-Skill. However my ultimate goal is the creation of a stable level 6 esper."
Accelerator, still on the large screen, then shifted his eyes down towards Othinus. The war god in turn held up her finger.
"And before any of you mortals ask, no the chairman will not be partaking in these experiments as a level 6 candidate. I am confident in my own abilities and the abilities of my subordinates that a level 6 shall be created by the end of the year. That is all mortals."
For a moment silence filled the area before someone started clapping, which led to the crowd in front of the stage to start clapping. The camera then focused back on the reporter.
"There you have it folks, the new member of the Board of Directors, she seems familiar. Some pretty bold claims she made there. It remains to be seen if she could follow them up, back to you-"
Mugino shifted her eyes away from the screen and back towards Frenda. The blonde haired girl gave her leader a shrug before speaking.
"In the end, that's my new employer now. I hope this is ok with you given that you guys work for a different member of the Board of Directors."
Mugino then placed her palm on her forehead before saying, "What the hell is this world coming to? I think I need a lie down as well."
"In the end, did something get into the air vents to cause all of you to suddenly have headaches."
"You can figure that out Frenda, I'm going to bed."
With that Mugino went to her room and prepared to go to bed. As she laid down on her bed and moved the covers over her body, she thought of something.
(Why did Frenda come back to life in the first place? She said her objective as a ghost was to find out about the world, but what is her goal now that she's back alive. And why did she come back here first? Is she here…to kill me? No that's not true, Frenda said she forgave me for killing her…but what if she was ordered by Othinus? I am a darkside member and that terrorist said she was hoping to improve the law around here.)
Thoughts like these circled around Mugino's mind until she finally fell asleep.
The next day, Mugino opened her eyes to see that Frenda was in the same bed as her. The esper nearly jumped out of her bed at the sight, however she did move enough to stir, and eventually wake the girl next to her. Frenda sat up in the bed, yawned, and stretched her arms.
"Morning, Mugino."
"Why were you sleeping in my bed Frenda?"
"In the end, I did go to my old room, but it looks like you threw out all the stuff I had there. So I decided to go to Kinuhata's room, but it looks like she locked her door and wouldn't answer my knocking. Hamazura and Takitsubo were sharing a bed already, so that left you. Fortunately for me you left your door unlocked. In the end though, a slip up like that could get you killed Mugino, a locked door could give you the few seconds needed to wake up and respond to a threat."
(Ok, if Frenda wanted me dead, she'd probably have done it by now right, while I was sleeping right…right?"
"In the end, that reminds me, since you guys threw out my stuff, which I don't blame you guys, I was dead after all. I have to go shopping today for new clothes and possibly other supplies depending on what you threw out. As much as the Valkyrie uniform offers protection, that I'm pretty I don't need, those pants don't make it easy to hide bombs."
"Huh, well we only threw out the clothes you had. We kept all the electronics you had and that truck with the lab as well."
"In the end, that's a relief, that was the stuff that'll probably be the hardest to replace. I'd be pretty angry if you threw those out or sold them."
"Well, we had to factory reset all your devices since we couldn't figure out the passwords, and we were planning on selling that truck on the black market, but couldn't find any buyers."
"Oh.."Frenda then shrugged with a smile on her face "In the end that's fine, it's a good thing I came back when I did. So did you move the truck, make sure the engine was good or something?"
"Uh…"
"That's fine as well, I can do a checkup when we go to it, but first, some new clothes."
A few hours later at a designer clothes shop, Frenda was in the changing room, trying out some clothes while Kinuhata, Takitsubo, and Mugino were waiting outside the room. A block away, Hamazura was sitting in a car, waiting for the girls to be done.
"In the end, I can't believe they still have these clothes in stock, and still in season too!" Frenda happily exclaimed behind the door of a changing room.
"I still can't super believe that Frenda is back and that ghost I thought you were hallucinating yesterday was actually her." Kinuhata said to Takitsubo and Mugino
"Actually that reminds me, I used my ability to scan Frenda, and she isn't emitting an AIM field." said Takitsubo
"Isn't that super because she's a level 0?" Kinuhata asked "She may not emit that much AIM for you to super pick up normally."
"Even then, I can still detect level 0s Kinuhata."
"So that would mean Frenda's no longer an esper?" asked Mugino
"That's a possibility, there could be another explanation."
"In the end, Mugino is right," Frenda said as she exited the changing room, now wearing the attire she wore before she died "I'm no longer an esper Takitsubo. If I still were, then using my valkyrie powers would result in me being hurt. In the end, I find it a fair trade off, since I was a level 0 anyways, I didn't have any powers worth mentioning."
"Wait, why is that Frenda?" asked Takitsubo
"It's this whole thing with magic and all that, you wouldn't really understand it."
"Is this magic thing how Othinus apparently threw me faster than the speed of sound yesterday?"
"She what!?"both Takitsubo and Kinuhata exclaimed
"In the end, yes Mugino, Othinus is something called a Magic God. Something near the top of the power hierarchy in the magic world."
"So is she equivalent to a level 5 or something?"
"In the end Mugino, she's more like a level 6. Reality itself is at her whims, which is why I'm alive and not an esper."
"I…ok, let us handle the checkout for you Frenda, you get the car and Hamazura." Mugino said as she grabbed a clothing bag "How many copies of these clothes do you want?"
"In the end, 7 sets should be fine, also thanks. I'll go get the car." Frenda said as she exited the store, setting off the alarm in the process as the clothes on her weren't paid for yet. Before the store clerk could call for her or ring security. Takitsubo went to the counter.
"Uh, we'll pay for her, so no need to worry, though my friends are getting more sets at the moment."
A few minutes later, the three ITEM members had exited the store, clothing bags in hand as they waited on the curb for their ride.
"So this magic stuff, you believe it?" asked Takitsubo
"I mean, what other explanation is there for Frenda to be back?" replied Mugino
"It could super be a clone with the original's memories."
"That doesn't explain the ghost I saw yesterday, nor that insane strength we saw with her smashing through the door."
"Maybe Frenda has been super using some different gadgets to enhance her strength. Or her body had been modified like Tachiuo Mary's with a unique muscle structure and all that super stuff. Though, I don't think Frenda has the super influence to get that kind of stuff."
"You two, I'm a bit more concerned with the idea that the new Board of Directors member is apparently on par with a level 6 esper." Takitsubo said while scanning the street for their car, "Didn't she mention in her speech last night that she was planning on making a level 6 esper?"
"Talk is cheap, she hasn't demonstrated that kind of ability yet, if she really has that kind of power, why wouldn't she make herself queen of the world or something like that?"
"I don't know Mugino, maybe she has someone tethering her down that prevents her from exercising her power without restraint?"
"Pah, like that's true, if that's the case, then the person tethering Othinus must be a serious monster in their own right. Given that the world is intact, I think we can rule out that possibility." Mugino said, brushing off Takitsubo's explanation
"So…who do you guys super think would be a candidate for becoming a level 6?" asked Kinuhata
"Maybe it could be one of us?"
"Don't be super silly Takitsubo, we're level 4s. The candidate would probably be level 5 like Mugino."
"Personally, I don't think it'll be me either, without Ainame Caroline, development of my power has stagnated. Unless, Othinus finds another person with her understanding, I think it'll either be the number 2 or the Railgun."
"You know it super might be," Kinuhata chuckled a little before finishing the sentence "a level one esper."
Mugino chuckled at the little joke Kinuhata made, it was then that Takitsubo pointed down the street.
"Hey there's the car….what the-"
Frenda was coming to them with the car…that she was carrying over her head. Hamazura could be seen in the driver's seat with a look of both confusion and horror as to what's happening at that very moment. When Frenda reached the curb, she gently set the car down before getting into the passenger seat.
"In the end, I got the car guys….guys?"
"When the hell did you get THIS super strong Frenda?" Kinuhata said with a shocked look on her face
"When I became a valkyrie, why?"
Takitsubo then chimed in with a deadpan expression on her face "Frenda, this isn't what we meant by get the car. Right Mugino? Mugino?"
Mugino was currently busy muttering to herself "Oh god is she now a demon from hell that has come to punish me for all my sins? Why must this monster be sent to earth to torment me-"
"Ok, let's just get into the car and do the next thing on the agenda."
Kinuhata and Takitsubo then loaded their luggage into the trunk of their car, and Mugino into one of the seats. As Hamazura drove to their next destination, Mugino continued to mutter to herself some kind of nonsense.
"So what's causing Mugino to act like?" Hamazura asked
"In the end, I think it was the fact she saw hell when she died yesterday."
"Oh yeah, when she went to the Boss's dorm-wait you said she died?"
"Yep, and Othinus brought her back to life shortly after, though in the brief moment her soul left her body, she might have seen hell. Well she did remark on it after all."
"Oh yeah that reminds me Frenda, since you super died, where did you end up, is there an afterlife?" Kinuhata said, asking a philosophical question that current science had no way to answer.
Frenda then turned her body so that she was facing the backseats of the car, and in turn Kinuhata.
"In the end, I ended up in Valhalla…surprisingly since they said it was for those who died an honorable death…which I was covering in fear before Mugino killed me so I didn't understand why I was there at first. I later found out that All-Mother pulled some strings and made me end up there instead of Helheim."
"Wait, does that super mean that Norse paganism is the one true religion in the world?"
"Oh no, no, no," Frenda said while waving her hand "In the end, other religions exist and it depends on which one you believe in or were born into that determines where you go after you die. In the end, since I was born in Scandinavia and didn't have any religion I followed in life, I ended up in the Norse afterlife. Though I have to admit, I thought Valhalla was hell at first."
"Uh, why is that?" asked Takistubo
"In the end, they were training me to be a Valkyrie instead of one of the regular Einherjar. So they put me through some pretty grueling stuff. Like I was pretty decent at close quarters combat in life, but those Valkyries were something else. Basically, I would get my butt kicked on the daily and forced to sharpen my skills fast, unless I wanted to spend the majority of the afterlife in constant pain. So that's why I know how to use a sword."
"Ok but that does not explain the super strength of Frenda." remarked Hamazura "Did it take a lot of effort to carry this car?"
"In the end, it was actually super light, the super strength comes from the fact I'm a Valkyrie. Which you would think makes the grueling training in Valhalla easier, but it doesn't. Besides sparring with people that have the same physical specs as you, they also scale everything to your level. I trained while having, not even supersonic projectiles, hypersonic projectiles sent at me. All told it was pretty hellish."
With that remark Mugino's heart started beating faster, as if her body was aware of the imminent danger she was in, or thought she was in.
"Hey Frenda, you said you didn't hold a grudge against me for killing you right? You aren't made right?"
"In the end, I don't hold a grudge against you Mugino. I am still a little angry at dying though."
"How much is 'a little'?"
"A teeny tiny bit. Oh hey! In the end it looks like we arrived at the warehouse where my lab is."
Frenda pointed up ahead to a warehouse building not too far away. A few minutes later, Hamazura parked the car nearby and ITEM made their way to the side entrance of the warehouse. Frenda took one look at the door and slightly smacked herself on the forehead.
"Oh duh, I don't have any of my keys. In the end, I can't unlock the door."
"Don't worry Frenda, we brought one with us." Hamazura said as he tossed Frenda a key
"Thanks Hamazura, let's see here," Frenda then fiddled with the key again before unlocking the door, "ah there we go."
The group ventured into the warehouse, the air was stale and most of the surfaces were covered in dust. Frenda found a light switch and flipped it on, as the lights lit up, a large military cargo truck stood in the center. It looked to be mostly intake with no visible damage or forced entry anywhere on the vehicle. The Valkyrie then made her way to the back where she opened the cargo door and peered inside.
"Well it looks like everything is here, hey Mugino can you come over here. In the end, I didn't bring a flashlight, so your power could provide some illumination for me."
All of sudden, Mugino's brain went into overdrive.
(It all makes sense, the graveyard, the movie choice, the comment about locking my door, everything! She is trying to kill me! She's just trying to make it look like an accident. If I use Meltdowner near that truck it'll probably blow up. Yes, if she were to kill me in my sleep it'd be obvious and she'd take the blame. It's almost the perfect crime…almost.)
"Frenda don't lie." Mugino said as orbs of green light appeared around her, "I know what you're trying to do, and I don't blame you, you of all people have plenty of reason to do what you're about to do."
"I'm sorry Mugino. In the end, I don't quite follow you."
"You're trying to kill me and make it look like an accident!" Mugino then fired a Meltdowner beam at Frenda's head, the Valkyrie easily dodged the attack. However there was another issue.
"If I know that sound, it looks like you hit a fuel line and it's currently burning up the inside of the truck. Some of the explosives are probably unstable from neglect and could possibly be activated by heat. We need to run!"
Kinuhata, Hamazura, and Takitsubo got the hint and proceeded to run out of the building. However, when Frenda did the same, Mugino stood in her path.
"This is just another ploy huh? Now that your first plan has gone up in flames you're trying to brush it off."
"Mugino, in the end, I don't know what's gotten into you, but if we don't leave we might-"
Frenda was then cut off, not physically but speech wise, by Mugino firing another Meltdowner beam.
"You're trying to mess with me huh? I'll show you what happens to those that think they can fuck with me!"
Mugino continued to shout at Frenda while firing her Meltdowner beams, fortunately it seems like Frenda was dodging them pretty easily.
"In the end, I don't know if I could take one of those beams and I don't exactly want to find out. Now can you please stop trying to-" Frenda then ducked under another one of Mugino's Meltdowner beams. However, when Frenda turned around, she had realized something dire.
The beams had hit the truck a second time, this time on a lower part of the truck, directly on the fuel tank. When Mugino hit the fuel line, the fuel tank started to empty, if it wasn't near empty already, replacing the liquid in the tank with fumes. Frenda knew there were three components to an explosion, a fuel, oxygen, and an ignition source. The fumes in the tanks provided both the fuel and oxygen, and Mugino, with her Meltdowner, had provided the ignition. The explosion might be small and relatively contained within the heavy duty fuel tank of the truck, however the other explosives Frenda had stored away were likely to set off a chain reaction.
In short, the warehouse was about to blow sky high. Acting quickly, Frenda rushed over to Mugino, tackled her to the ground, and covered the esper's ears with her hands, the valkyrie made sure that her own body would take the brunt of the explosion. She had recovered from death itself, so she kinda knew she could take it. Just before Mugino could react to this action, a large explosion erupted from the truck, engulfing the warehouse in fireball.
Later at a certain hospital, Frenda was sitting on a hospital bed while being inspected by a tall, blonde blue eyed haired girl, around 18 years old in age, wearing very baggy and large hospital scrubs. Though it was pretty evident, despite the baggy clothes, that the girl was pretty big.
"In the end, that's what happened. So am I ok Rose?" asked Frenda
"Not even the second day back alive and you're already admitted into the hospital. Though to be fair, it's not like you really needed it." Rose said as shined a light into Frenda's face to check for injuries.
"In the end, my friends decided that despite the fact I was walking around fine after the explosion, that I needed to go to the hospital because of possible internal bleeding. All told, even without the enhanced abilities of a valkyrie I know how to survive an explosion like that…and what internal bleeding feels like."
"You don't even have tinnitus let alone internal hemorrhaging. Anyways, I'll pull some strings with the paperwork so you can leave in an hour without any hassle."
"Thanks Rose."
"Don't mention it, All-Father did have you on toilet cleaning duty at the penthouse. Didn't want you missing your first day of it after all~"
"Ugh, don't remind me. Oh yeah. In the end, what about Mugino?"
"Except for a few singed hairs, she's fine. Pretty quick thinking on your part to cover her ears like that, it managed to save her hearing."
"So where is she?"
"We've determined that your friend was mentally unstable and admitted her to a mental ward. Accompanied with a few AIM jammers so she doesn't use her power to escape. You can arrange a visit if you wish."
"Great…"
Mugino woke up in a padded cell wearing a straight jacket. Floating above her was what appeared to be the ghost of Frenda.
"Mugino, in the end this is all your fault."
"All MY fault? You're the reason I'm here! You made me look crazy in front of everyone then attempted to end my life."
"In the end, who fired the first shot Mugino? I didn't raise my hand to hurt you at all, all the harm that came to you is solely your own doing."
"I…goddammit your right."
It was then, someone floated through the walls to see Mugino…the actual incorporeal form of Frenda. Which confused Mugino as she was currently seeing double of Frenda's ghost.
"Hey Mugino. In the end, I hope you get better soon. Anyways a neat thing I could do is have my spirit leave my body and traverse the world as a ghost, which is how I'm seeing you right now."
"I…uh…Frenda, is there anything else in this room besides me and you?"
"In the end, there's nothing else here. Why'd you ask?"
(Oh…I've actually gone crazy haven't I?)
It was then one of the orderlies opened the door and spoke to the real ghost of Frenda.
"Hey, ghost girl, don't disturb the patients like that, it'll freak them out. If you want to visit you can arrange an appointment."
"In the end, I guess that's my cue to leave, see you soon Mugino!"
With that, Frenda left, leaving Mugino with her hallucinated form of Frenda.
AN: Decided to pump this one out fast, mainly because I REALLY wanted to write it. Originally this was and Addendum 2 were going to be the same chapter but I decided that there were to jokes I wanted to end on. Frenda smashing through the door into a frightened ITEM and Mugino hallucinating Frenda's ghost before seeing the actual ghost of Frenda.
Btw Rose, the person Frenda was talking to in the hospital, is one of my OCs, you'll see and learn more of her later. As well as her brothers, one of which was actually looking for her in the previous chapter.
As for some tidbits about the previous chapter, originally Mugino was going to learn about the Infinite Hells when she confronted Index, and Othinus wouldn't show up, but I decided to change it into Othinus throwing Mugino at the speed of sound. Btw me and cray keep connecting Frenda with Othinus despite there being no canon connection, which I find kinda funny.
Oh yeah, there's that big elephant in the room, that being that Othinus is now one of the members of the Board of Directors and decided to take Touma's surname for her own. I wonder how Touma would react to that...next chapter people, as well as a few more surprises for out little unfortunate Dragon King.
One last thing too, there's a tiny bit of foreshadowing as to who will be the first level 6 in RoAD in this chapter, no names, but I will ask. What do you think their level with be? Hint: Keep in the mind the genre of this fic.